Hi Reader,

Welcome to the Google Sheets Tips newsletter #241!

➜ News

I.
​Last week, Google announced improvements to localized formatting in Google Sheets and CSV imports. If you're based in Europe, and use a comma for a decimal point, then this will be a welcome upgrade.

​Read more about localized formatting improvements​

II.
​Momentum around AppSheet continues to grow. This article details the four areas of focus for AppSheet in 2023:

​Read more about how AppSheet continues to grow​

Personally, I'm excited about the new desktop UI that's in development.

Maybe 2023 will be the year I dive into AppSheet.

Question for you:

Do you use AppSheet already or plan to use it in the near future?

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➜ Google Sheets Tip #241: A Chart Makeover

Here is your Google Sheets tip, which you can think of as your Monday morning espresso, in spreadsheet form.

My wife Alexis runs a startup — They Got Acquired — that shares the stories of companies that sell for $100,000 to $50 million. They recently celebrated their first anniversary and, as part of that celebration, they're sharing a lot of behind-the-scenes information about building a new media brand.

One of the charts they recently shared was a breakdown of their expenses in year one.

I helped give this chart a makeover before it went live, transforming it from the boring default chart into something more on-brand that popped off the page.

Here's how:

Before

Here is the default bar chart that Google Sheets generated from the simple table of data:

It's ok, but it can be improved with a few simple tweaks.

The essence of data visualization is to convey information in a concise and engaging way. There are some simple guidelines that help achieve this:

1. Reduce clutter in the chart
2. Add context to help understanding
3. Focus the viewer's attention on what matters
4. Make it visually pleasing to look at

Essentially, we can make it more legible and more interesting, both of which help the reader understand the information.

Let's see what changes we made to the default chart to make it "pop" more.

After

Here is the new chart, after our makeover:

And here are the steps taken:

1. Add data labels for easy reading of the values
2. Remove the gridlines to reduce clutter
3. Remove the vertical axis to reduce clutter
4. Set the horizontal axis font color to white, so the labels don't show (we can do this here because we added data labels)
5. Remove the axis titles to reduce clutter
6. Add a more informative title, including the total amount for additional context
7. Add the brand logo above chart (as an image in Google Sheets)
8. Add the brand URL in a cell underneath the chart (so the source is always visible if the image is shared)
9. Change the bar colors to match the brand
10. Change the font to match the brand

All of these changes can be made in the chart editor sidebar, under the Customize section.

We used a snipping tool (e.g. Snagit) to then create an image of the chart with the logo and URL showing.

I encourage you to spend 5 extra minutes with your next chart and apply some of these steps. I'm sure you'll notice a difference.

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If you enjoyed this newsletter, please forward it to a friend who might enjoy it.

Have a great week!

Cheers,
Ben

P.S. They Got Acquired are launching their second data report this week: a deep-dive into deals and data in the Saas space.

If you're an entrepreneur thinking of selling in the near future, or an M&A professional, then you should check it out:

🔥 SaaS Deals Report 🔥